The Outline of the History of Children's Literature
Time Period Event
Classical World - Oral storytelling
500 BCE – - Greek and Roman myths and epics
400 CE* (note) - Aesop’s fables
Middle Ages - Religious tales / Biblical stories
476 CE – 1400 - Romantic tales / Legends
Renaissance - The printing press made it possible to
World make multiple copies of books
1400 – 1700 - Rise of Educational books
* Orbis Sensualism Pictus
by John Comenius (1658) - the 1st
children’s picture book
* New England Primer
(1690 -1886) - the most famous early
school book
- Emergence of Chapbooks (small and
cheaply made books containing fairy
tales
18th and early - John Newbery’s publishing of children’s - first successfully promoted children's
19th Centuries books
1700 – 1830
- Rise of Moralistic Tales
- Revival of Folktales
* Tales of Mother Goose by Charles
Perrault in France (1697) and translated
in English (1729)
* Grimms’ Nursery and Household
Tales in Germany (1812)
* Hans Christian Anderson’s Fairy
Tales in Denmark (1835)
Significance
- kept ancient stories alive
- Children and adults shared a common
literature
- set examples for children, for a didactic
purpose
- created a mixture of realism and fantasy
- promoted mass education
- the emphasis was on spiritual and intellectual
development; schooling became important
for a Puritan child's upbringing
- emphasized giving lessons in proper
behavior for boys
- helped to keep interest in traditional tales
alive during the Puritan Movement
literature designed to entertain children as
well as to teach them
- influenced by Rousseau’s emphasis on
proper moral development; written mostly
by women
- first written version of folktales
- inspired a flurry of folktales collecting
throughout Europe
- first modern folktales
The Victorians: - Rise of Modern Fantasy
Golden Age
1830 – 1900 * Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
(1865) by Lewis Carroll (England)
* The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900)
by L. Frank Baum (U.S.)
* The Tale of Peter Rabbit (1901) by
Beatrix Potter
- Rise of Realistic Stories
* Little Women (1868) by Louisa May
Alcott (U.S)
* Treasure Island (1881) by Robert
Louis Stevenson (England)
- more talented writers wrote entertaining
stories for children
- first children’s masterpiece of modern
fantasy (breaking the bonds of didacticism)
- first classic U.S. modern fantasy for children
- early important modern picture storybook in
English
- early family story of great popularity (girls’
story)
- famous classic adventure stories (boys’
story)

20th Century - Emergence of some of the most notable

fantasy writers of children's literature
* Winnie-the-Pooh (1926) by A. A. - early classic personified toy animal story
Milne (England)
- Popularity of the publication of Picture
Storybooks
- Popularity of Fantasy stories and series
books - early classic quest adventure for children
* The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
(1950) and sequels by C. S. Lewis
* Charlotte's Web (1952) by E. B. - classis U.S. animal fantasy
White

- Rise of New Realism (after World War - a franker and more open approach to
II) subjects in children's books

- A variety of world cultures presented in - the field of children's literature has grown
children's books worldwide; heroes came in all colors

- Emergence of awards for children's - promoted the writing of great works of

books (the earliest one was Newbery children's literature
Medal in 1922, U.S.)

- Study of children's literature began in - raised the status of children's literature and
the last quarter of the 20th century promoted the publishing of children's books

*Note: CE stands for “Common Era.” It is a relatively new term that is experiencing increased usage and is eventually
expected to replace AD (“Anno Domini” in Latin or “the year of the Lord” in English). BCE stands for “Before the Common
Era.” It is eventually expected to replace BC, which means “Before Christ.”